Heading into the 2023 season, the Green Bay Packers know that there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding their offense. Jordan Love is taking over as the starting quarterback and experience is lacking in the unit as a whole.
That will put some pressure on the defense to get the job done and carry the load overall. Last season many thought the Packers were Super Bowl contenders because they no longer had to rely solely on Aaron Rodgers to carry the team. The defense was expected to be elite but they fell well short of those expectations.
Green Bay was especially poor against the run, where they ranked 26th in yards allowed, 23rd in rushing touchdowns and 28th in yards per carry. Unable to stop the run and control the clock, the Packers lost plenty of games they had no business losing.
A big reason for those struggles was a lackluster performance from the linebackers group. Heading into the 2023 season, this unit is ranked as the 17th-best in the NFL by PFF. Rookie Quay Walker will help determine whether this unit can take a step forward, as he was a big reason the team struggled against the run.
“Walker played well enough against the pass, grading above 70.0 in coverage and as a pass-rusher. His 34.9 run-defense grade, however, was the seventh-worst mark at the position. He struggled to read his keys and was often late to react to movement up front. Run-heavy matchups against the Giants and Eagles gave Walker a lot of problems.”
Walker ended up playing in all 17 games as a rookie and started 16 of them. He led the team with 121 tackles, but his grades were very poor. If he can improve his grade even into the mid-40s, which still isn’t great but a marked improvement, the defense as a whole will be better.
Along with Walker, the Packers have veteran De’Vondre Campbell entrenched as a starter. He came out of nowhere during the 2021 season with an All-Pro campaign. While he wasn’t able to replicate that success in 2022, with injuries being a part of the reason, he was still more than solid. His pass defense has improved but his run defense grade dropped to 60.3, which is closer to his career norm.
Improving against the run is key for the Packers’ linebackers. If they are able to do that, this defense will skyrocket up the rankings in 2023.
